Ian McCollum - Forgotten Weapons

SIG Manurhin 543 Semiauto: I Really Like This Rifle

May 23, 2026 Ian McCollum 0

SIG introduced the 540 series of rifles in 1973, which included the full-length 540 in 5.56mm, the 541 in a number of experimental calibers for the Swiss military, the 542 in 7.62mm NATO, and the […]

RIA 5.0E: A Very Nice Pistol, But For Whom?

May 22, 2026 Ian McCollum 21

Rock Island Armory is best known for its Philippine-made 1911s, but expended into US pistol production with a novel design a couple years ago. The call it the 5.0, and it uses an interesting vertically-traveling […]

The Surplus Guns Gold Rush When Communism Fell (w/ Val Forgett)

May 20, 2026 Ian McCollum 7

When the Soviet Union collapsed, there was a gold rush for the surplus guns held by all the various newly independent republics, as well as the Warsaw Pact nations. Lord of War is not far […]

H&R T223: In Vietnam Before the HK33

May 18, 2026 Ian McCollum 23

The very first iteration of the HK 33 roller-delayed rifle was included in early US rifle testing in Vietnam. H&K worked with Harrington & Richardson as their US representative, who did final assembly on a […]

North Korean Type 68-1 Export “Asian Contract” Underfolder (Semiauto Build)

May 16, 2026 Ian McCollum 2

North Korea is too poor to finance social credit points, but if they did have them, you’d get loads for wearing our Best Korea propaganda shirt: https://varusteleka.com/en-us/products/forgotten-weapons-best-korea-propaganda-t-shirt North Korea began making a version of the […]

Masterpiece Arms MPA-971: Frankengun of the Assault Weapons Ban

May 15, 2026 Ian McCollum 11

The Masterpiece Arms MPA-971 was designed in 2003, at the tail end of the US Federal Assault Weapons Ban. Among other things, the ban prohibited the manufacture or import of magazines holding more than 10 […]

Iver Johnson Prototype .25ACP Blow Forward Pocket Pistol

May 13, 2026 Ian McCollum 8

This is a one-of-a-kind prototype of a .25ACP blow forward pistol made by Iver Johnson. It was patented in 1916 (patent applied for in 1912) by William O. Barnes of Massachusetts, and assigned to Iver […]

Remington Model 17 Police Special: The Shockwave a Century Ago

May 11, 2026 Ian McCollum 16

Available from Morphys here: https://auctions.morphyauctions.com/_N__REMINGTON_ARMS_COMPANY_MODEL_17_SPECIAL_POLICE-LOT665717.aspx Remington introduced the Model 17 as a lightweight 20ga pump shotgun in 1921. In addition to a variant of sporting grades and a 20” barreled riot model, they also offered […]

Navy M1 Garand Conversions to 7.62mm NATO: Mk2 Mod0 & Mk2 Mod1

May 9, 2026 Ian McCollum 17

Available from Morphys here: Mk2 Mod0 – https://auctions.morphyauctions.com/_C__DOCUMENTED_USN_SPRINGFIELD_M1_GARAND_MK_2_MOD_-LOT661040.aspx Mk2 Mod1 – https://auctions.morphyauctions.com/_C__DOCUMENTED_USN_SPRINGFIELD_M1_GARAND_MK_2_MOD_-LOT661041.aspx When the US military adopted 7.62mm NATO, the Army considered converting M1 Garands to the new caliber, and decided it wasn’t worthwhile. For […]

Custom-Order Walthers: Model HP and P38 in 7.65mm Parabellum

May 8, 2026 Ian McCollum 22

Available from Morphys here: 7.65 P38 – https://auctions.morphyauctions.com/_C__RARE_EARLY_WALTHER_P38_7_65_SEMI_AUTOMATIC_PIS-LOT658919.aspx 7.65 Walther HP – https://auctions.morphyauctions.com/_C__WALTHER_HP__30_LUGER_SEMI_AUTOMATIC_PISTOL_-LOT658893.aspx When Walther first developed the P38, it was designated the Heerespistole – “Army Pistol”. Only after getting official Wehrmacht adoption did it […]